DefinePK

Abstract

As the world is getting more and more urbanized, the threats to urban living are increasing and the service delivery is becoming more difficult for cash strapped municipal governments and utilities. Therefore, the city governments around the globe are increasing their focus on smart and resilient city development and management. However, the availability of finance is a key issue. In Pakistan, the capacity of the local governments to deal with newer challenges such as climate change and natural and man-made disasters is further constrained as they have limited autonomy to attract investments and generate revenues. Recently, some windows of opportunity have opened to provide relief and improve the financial health of municipalities such as Adaptation Funds and other Climate Investment Funds (CIFs). The present paper discusses these tools and international best practices in the context of the municipal finance situation in Pakistan and identifies how best cities can access these financial windows by improving their creditworthiness and performance.